Red-eye gravy
Encyclopedia
Red-eye gravy is a thin sauce often seen in the cuisine of the Southern United States
and associated with the country ham
of that region. Other names for this sauce include poor man's gravy, bird-eye gravy, bottom sop and red ham gravy. The gravy is made from the drippings of pan-fried country ham
, bacon
, or other pork, typically mixed with black coffee
. The same drippings, when mixed with flour
, make the flavoring for Sawmill gravy. Red-eye gravy is often served over ham, cornbread, grits
, or biscuit
s.
A common practice is to dip the inner sides of a split biscuit into the gravy in order to add flavor and keep the biscuit from being too dry when a piece of country ham is added between the two halves: the Southern "ham biscuit" (although the Appalachian ham biscuit is simply a biscuit with country ham
). Another popular way to serve red-eye gravy, especially in parts of Alabama, is with mustard or ketchup mixed in with the gravy. Biscuits are then dipped in the gravy (often termed "sopped" in Southern English).
In Louisiana, Cajun-style gravy is often made with a roast beef instead of ham. Black coffee is always used, and it is frequently a strongly brewed chicory
coffee. The gravy is ladled over the meat on a bed of rice, staining the rice a dark brown color. Often, French bread and some kind of beans are also served as a side, like butter beans (lima beans) or pea
s.
The Mississippi variation uses red wine in the place of coffee.
Less traditional preparation techniques do not always result in the "red eye" appearance, leading to folk legends surrounding the origin of the name. For instance, that former United States President Andrew Jackson
requested ham with gravy as red as his cook's eyes, which were bloodshot from drinking the night before, or that the black coffee in the gravy will keep people awake.
the pan. The coffee and grease are then poured into the same container in a one to one ratio.
Other recipes exist, using water instead of coffee, or adding coffee with grease still present in the pan. When the coffee is added to the grease in this manner, a homogeneous mixture may result that lacks the "red eye" appearance.
Florida Cracker
s referred to tomato gravy as red-eye gravy, and prepare it in much the same way by adding flour and tomatoes to bacon grease. This is served with fried catfish or other fish.
Cuisine of the Southern United States
The cuisine of the Southern United States is defined as the historical regional culinary form of states generally south of the Mason Dixon Line dividing Pennsylvania from Maryland and Delaware as well as along the Ohio River, and extending west to Southern Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.The most...
and associated with the country ham
Country ham
Country ham is a variety of cured ham, typically very salty, associated with the Southern United States. Country ham is first mentioned in print in 1944, referring to a method of curing and smoking done in the rural parts of North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, Kentucky and other nearby...
of that region. Other names for this sauce include poor man's gravy, bird-eye gravy, bottom sop and red ham gravy. The gravy is made from the drippings of pan-fried country ham
Country ham
Country ham is a variety of cured ham, typically very salty, associated with the Southern United States. Country ham is first mentioned in print in 1944, referring to a method of curing and smoking done in the rural parts of North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, Kentucky and other nearby...
, bacon
Bacon
Bacon is a cured meat prepared from a pig. It is first cured using large quantities of salt, either in a brine or in a dry packing; the result is fresh bacon . Fresh bacon may then be further dried for weeks or months in cold air, boiled, or smoked. Fresh and dried bacon must be cooked before eating...
, or other pork, typically mixed with black coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
. The same drippings, when mixed with flour
Flour
Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...
, make the flavoring for Sawmill gravy. Red-eye gravy is often served over ham, cornbread, grits
Grits
Grits are a food of American Indian origin common in the Southern United States and mainly eaten at breakfast. They consist of coarsely ground corn, or sometimes alkali-treated corn . They are also sometimes called sofkee or sofkey from the Muskogee language word...
, or biscuit
Biscuit (bread)
A biscuit in the United States, and widely used in popular American English, is a small bread made with baking powder or baking soda as a chemical leavening agent rather than yeast....
s.
A common practice is to dip the inner sides of a split biscuit into the gravy in order to add flavor and keep the biscuit from being too dry when a piece of country ham is added between the two halves: the Southern "ham biscuit" (although the Appalachian ham biscuit is simply a biscuit with country ham
Country ham
Country ham is a variety of cured ham, typically very salty, associated with the Southern United States. Country ham is first mentioned in print in 1944, referring to a method of curing and smoking done in the rural parts of North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, Kentucky and other nearby...
). Another popular way to serve red-eye gravy, especially in parts of Alabama, is with mustard or ketchup mixed in with the gravy. Biscuits are then dipped in the gravy (often termed "sopped" in Southern English).
In Louisiana, Cajun-style gravy is often made with a roast beef instead of ham. Black coffee is always used, and it is frequently a strongly brewed chicory
Chicory
Common chicory, Cichorium intybus, is a somewhat woody, perennial herbaceous plant usually with bright blue flowers, rarely white or pink. Various varieties are cultivated for salad leaves, chicons , or for roots , which are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and additive. It is also...
coffee. The gravy is ladled over the meat on a bed of rice, staining the rice a dark brown color. Often, French bread and some kind of beans are also served as a side, like butter beans (lima beans) or pea
Pea
A pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...
s.
The Mississippi variation uses red wine in the place of coffee.
Origin
Red Eye Gravy's name comes from its distinct appearance. Prepared traditionally, when coffee and grease are combined in the final step (see Preparation, below) the coffee and grease form a heterogeneous mixture, with the water-based coffee sinking to the bottom and the oil-based grease forming the top layer. In a round bowl, therefore, the mixture looks much like a red human eye.Less traditional preparation techniques do not always result in the "red eye" appearance, leading to folk legends surrounding the origin of the name. For instance, that former United States President Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
requested ham with gravy as red as his cook's eyes, which were bloodshot from drinking the night before, or that the black coffee in the gravy will keep people awake.
Preparation
The basic recipe for red-eye gravy is quite simple. After the ham has been cooked, the grease is removed from the pan. Black coffee is then used to deglazeDeglazing (cooking)
Deglazing is a cooking technique for removing and dissolving caramelized bits of food from a pan to make a pan sauce.When a piece of meat is roasted, pan fried or prepared in a pan with another form of dry heat, a deposit of caramelized sugars, carbohydrates, and/or proteins forms on the bottom of...
the pan. The coffee and grease are then poured into the same container in a one to one ratio.
Other recipes exist, using water instead of coffee, or adding coffee with grease still present in the pan. When the coffee is added to the grease in this manner, a homogeneous mixture may result that lacks the "red eye" appearance.
Florida Cracker
Florida cracker
Florida cracker refers to original colonial-era English and American pioneer settlers of what is now the U.S. state of Florida, and their descendants. The first Florida crackers arrived in 1763 when Spain traded Florida to Great Britain...
s referred to tomato gravy as red-eye gravy, and prepare it in much the same way by adding flour and tomatoes to bacon grease. This is served with fried catfish or other fish.
External links
- Track That Word! listing for 'red-eye gravy' on the Do You Speak American?Do You Speak American?Do You Speak American? is a documentary film and accompanying book about journalist Robert MacNeil's investigation into how different people throughout the United States of America speak. The book and documentary look at the evolution of America's way of speaking from the English language to...
website